My best friend organized drinks with an established business woman who she thinks MM and I should meet this evening. She wanted to choose a place that would be sophisticated and nice without the typical happy hour crowd, so she chose Murals on 54 at the Warwick Hotel.

Murals On 54 is the Warwick Hotel’s recently refurbished dining room. It features Dean Cornwell’s original historic murals – hence the name. The dining room accentuates the murals which were commissioned by William Randolph Hearst in 1937 for The Raleigh Room, which was the restaurant inside his Warwick Hotel. This is also the reason for the murals showing Sir Walter Raleigh receiving his charter from Queen Elizabeth.
After a dispute involving his compensation, Cornwell painted obscene images in the murals. The large mural on the left side was covered for over 40 years because of the controversy – it showed a man peeing on the queen and another man peein gon Sir Walter Raleigh! Another mural pictured an Indian with a bare butt. Eventually, Cornwell painted over on of the images, but the others are still there.

The refurbishment Murals on 54 was headed by Pierre Court, who also redesigned the New York Palace, Villard Bar, Hôtel Plaza Athénée in Paris, etc. The interior is full of soft and warm fabrics with low lighting. Court wanted to accentuate the murals most.

The Italian menu includes antipasti, insalate, pasta, piatti forti, and contorni with a nice wine list. It is simple and to the point. A good place for a meet and greet or a business dinner…after all, it’s not every night you can eat & drink in the company of historic art.